Welcome to THEJNSREPORT’S:  Ferry Service Returns to The Boogie Down!!!

For more than 80 years ferry service has been a forgotten transportation option for residents of the Bronx.  Instead many Bronx residents had no alternative way to get to and from the city other than driving, taking the bus, or subways in and out.  The commute times made it basically a horribly long commute to get to and from work for many residents who don’t or couldn’t afford to live in Manhattan.  Several years ago we mentioned that docks were being built up in the Soundview section of the Bronx a neighborhood I know all to well as myself and my siblings grew up there.

Let me paint the picture for you.  Imagine a hybrid area that seems part suburban and part inner city.  Private homes on one side and projects just a few blocks away from the private homes.  A two fare zone to get to and from this area meant for many of us walking to bus routes like the Bx27 or Bx39 taking a ride to the subway with overcrowded, often late more times than not buses, then transferring to trains, that depending on your station stop were either local or connected to an express 6 train to bring you into the city.

Now if you worked in a place like say Brooklyn that would mean once you exited the subway station stop you had to pay another fare to take the bus to your final destination or if in the city paying another fare on a bus to connect you to wherever in the city you had to go.  All this while dealing with the chaos that is the MTA wrought with delay after delay and signal problems while playing the standard BS PA “We’re delayed due to train traffic ahead of us”.

Many a time you would sit there sigh and dream of what it would be like to sit on a ferry like the ones that connect Staten Island to Manhattan.  A quick 30 minute ride over the water was just a distant dream.  Today August 15, 2018 Mayor De Blasio along with local news marked the opening day of ferry service that connects Soundview to 90th Street, 34th Street, and Wall Street.  The ferry ride is huge and not only signals that improved commuter life is here for many Bronx residents but that real estate prices are most certainly going to rise for homeowners in close proximity to the ferry.  I imagine a rebirth and revitalization similar to the gentrification we’ve seen going on in places like Williamsburg, Queens, & the South Bronx where new luxury condo buildings are going up just over the 3rd Ave Bridge.

Once this ferry service proves it’s worth we should anticipate expansion of service to be a demand as more and more commuters flee packed 6 trains and local buses for this more scenic and preferable transportation option which currently is the same cost as a bus or subway ride.  The only question I have is why the hell did it take so long?

What are your thoughts?